ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, at this time i rise to take this hour, this special order hour, on behalf of the congressional black caucus. it's with great honor that i rise as co-anchor for the next 60 minutes. we have a chance to speak directly to the american people on the issues of great importance to the congressional black caucus, congress and the constituents we represent, as well as all americans. this evening myself and co-anchor marc veasey will discuss two topics. wealthcare over health care, and the -- wealth care over health care, and the contributions of caribbean americans. on the matter of health care. senate republicanses have finally released their draft version of the house-passed american health care act, and it's clear why they kept it behind closed doors all this time. the bill is worse than the one that was passed in the house. which deeper cuts the -- with deeper cuts to medicaid and a ban on planned parenthood funding for one year. just like the bill that passed the house this prop

ms. plaskett: thank you. did you have -- and i know that there were other issues that you wanted to discuss, congressman veasey, with regard to some of these, and examples which iu wanted to give as well -- which you wanted to give as well. mr. veasey: absolutely. very briefly, the president's history on racism from the very beginning of his candidacy, of course, the way he disparaged mexicans and mexican americans in this country, by calling people rapists, accusing people of bringing disease and crime into the united states. pretending that he didn't know who david duke was. unbelievable. pretending to not know who david duke was. ms. plaskett: well. mr. veasey: even condone -- ms. plaskett: i think he knows now. mr. veasey: even condone the beatings of a black lives matter protester. but his history extends even before that. of course it was very well covered, very well chronicled during the campaign, about the justice department suing his real estate company and his father's real estate company for not re

ms. plaskett, for five minutes. ms. plaskett: thank you, mr. speaker. unanimous consent to address the house for five minutes, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. plaskett: mr. speaker, i only have five minutes to do justice to a great people. and it's with great honor that i rise today to speak on the sues impacting the caribbean and the contribute shunes of the people of caribbean heritage and american fabric. june 6, 2006, president george bush signed a proclamation that was ushered through this house by congresswoman barbara lee, house resolution 71, naming june caribbean heritage month. june allows us all to highlight the many contributions of caribbean americans to the united states. the campaign to designate june as national caribbean american heritage month was spearheaded by dr. claire nelson, founder and president of the institute of caribbean studies. through in month, we hope to ensure that america is reminded that its greatness lies in its diversity. with caribbean immigrants from founding fathers a

ms. plaskett: thank you, mr. speaker. with this being caribbean heritage month, i wanted to highlight and congratulate a native virgin islander who is now the new commander of the u.s.s. gabery ell giffords, which was commissioned this past weekend in texas. the u.s.s. gabrielle giffords, the 16th ship to be named by a woman is in fact commanded by keith woodley, a native of st. thomas, u.s. virgin islands, a graduate of florida a&m and the florida institute of technology. at the commissioning of the ship, commander woodley stated, this is not just a new ship. this is a new class of ship. the crew have risen to that challenge and performed exceptionally well in getting the ship ready for service. i would be remiss in also acknowledging during caribbean american month aliton adams, who is also from st. thomas, the first -- the u.s. navy's first band master. his music was performed by numerous bands and continues to be performed. i also, of course, want to wish my parents a happy 58th wedding anniversary today. we love you,

ms. plaskett: permission to address the house for one minute. thank you, mr. speaker. this month marks the end of the school year for students and that means graduation and promotion sell bations. i want to congratulate all of our student on their acheefments and proud family members. to our teachers, faculty and staff we thank you for your commitment to educating our children. we know there are many challengeses in today's learning environment but the challenges you face, you stand strong. we appreciate all your work. as a representative in congress for the virgin islands, i pledge to continue to support legislation and initiatives that make our children, teachers and administrators a priority. to the students of the u.s. virgin islands, i have a message for you. during the summer months take the time to continue to learn. participate in the governor's reading challenge. find a new hobby, work and please explore the natural wonder of our home, the virgin islands of the united states. be safe and best wishes to you all as you continue a productive educational journey.